The free radical theory of aging was first proposed by Dr. Denham Harman in 1956. It is now recognized that living cells continuously produce free radicals during their normal functions such as producing energy. Free radicals also come from smoking, radiation, sunlight and other factors in the environment. Endogenous and exogenous free radicals are highly reactive substances, capable of reacting irreversibly with many biological molecules, producing random changes, and causing progressive deterioration of the biological system.
The cells have an antioxidant defense system which prevents most, but not all, of the free radical damages. Constant free radical damages can eventually kill the cells. When free radicals kill or damage enough cells in an organism, the organism ages.
The antioxidant defense system removes free radicals through the use of antioxidants. There is sufficient evidence to support the relationship between free radicals and aging. For example, the longer an animal lives, the more antioxidants it has in its body. Some antioxidants are produced by the body through endogenous enzymes, such as catalase, glutathione peroxidases (GPX) and superoxide dismutases (SOD). Others come from oral ingestion, such as vitamin C, vitamin E, β-carotene, selenium etc. It is believed that taking antioxidants to remove access free radicals in the body can slow down the aging process. Some studies show that antioxidants may help prevent heart disease, some cancers, cataracts, and other health problems that are more common as people get older.
One of the aging problems men face is the occurrence of male menopause. It has been estimated approximately 40% of men in their 40s, 50s, and 60s will experience some degree of male menopause. Also known as andropause, male menopause is of recent recognition with researches first published in 1970s.
Less overwhelming than the female menopause, male menopause is more gradual and some never experience it. Male menopause involves the hormonal, physiological and chemical changes that occur in men generally between the ages of 40 and 55. It is characterized with lethargy, depression, increased irritability, mood swings, decreased libido, erectile dysfunction and alteration in cognition. Although its causes have not been fully researched, factors such as hormone deficiencies, excessive alcohol consumption, smoking, hypertension, medications, poor diet, lack of exercise, poor circulation and psychological problems have been known to contribute to this condition.
It has been found the blood level of the male hormone testosterone decreases significantly even in healthy men by age 55, when comparing to what it is at age 45. In fact, by age 80, most male hormone levels have decreased to pre-puberty levels. Low testosterone has been associated with fatigue, depression, loss of concentration, and decreased muscle strength and endurance.
Depression is another common denominator of male menopause. According to the Epidemiologic Catchment Area Study in the 1991 NIH Consens Statement, depressive symptoms occur in approximately 15 percent of community residents over 65 years of age. Patients may suffer from depressed mood, loss of appetite, sleeplessness, anergia and loss of interest and enjoyment of the normal pursuits of life. Depression is often underdiagnosed and undertreated in the elderly, partially because the health care providers and/or the patients themselves often conclude that depression is a normal consequence of physical illnesses, as well as social and economic problems associated with the elderly. At this time, there is no one best agent that provides comprehensive relief for symptoms associated with male menopause, particularly for the elderly.
Ganoderma (Ganoderma lucidum Leyss ex Fr. Karst) is a polyporous fungus. It belongs to the class Basidiomycetes, the family Polypolaceae, and the genus Ganoderma. Since ancient times, ganoderma has been praised as a miracle fungus for its capability of prolonging human life. It is believed that the medicinal effects of ganoderma lie upon the natural or bioactive substances it produces which can stimulate or modulate the neuro-endocrino-immuno system of human body to fight off diseases. Ganoderma is also well known for its antitumor and immune enhancing properties, (Kim et al., Int. J. Mol. Med. (1999), 4(3):273-277), cardiovascular effects (Lee et al., Chem. Pharm. Bull. (1990), 38:1359-1364), as well as free radical scavenging and antihepatotoxic activities (Lin et al., J. Ethnopharmacol., (1995), 47(1):33-41).
Ganoderma is the most rare and valuable herb in Chinese medicine. It is known in China for over 5,000 years as “ling zhi”. There are a variety of ganoderma, for instance, G. lucidum (red), G. applanatum (brown), G. tsugae (red), G. sinense (black), and G. oregonense (dark brown). However, due to the fact that wild types of ganoderma only grow naturally and very rarely on aged trees in steep mountains, research which requires a constant supply of high quantity and quality of ganoderma has rarely been conducted.
Although it is believed that the spores of ganoderma represent the essence of ganoderma because they contain all the bioactive substances of ganoderma , most of the ganoderma studies are conducted using the fruit body or mycelium of ganoderma as experimental materials. Ganoderma spores are rarely studied.
Ganoderma spores are tiny and mist-like spores of 5˜8 μm in sizes which have extremely hard and resilient, double-layer epispores, thus making them difficult to break open. The ganoderma spores normally scatter at the pelius of mature ganoderma . When mature, the ganoderma spores are ejected from the pileus. Such ejected ganoderma spores are collectively called “spore powders”. In the wild, the “spore powders” are difficult to collect because of the following reasons: (1) the germination rate (i.e., about 3-15%) of the spores is extremely low; (2) the ejection period is relatively short (i.e., approximately 10 days per lifecycle); and (3) some environmental factors, such as wind and rain, may also hinder the collection of the spores. In addition, the substances of the collected spores are difficult to extract due to the resiliency of the epispores.
In recent years, with the improvement of the spore breaking techniques, more research which directed to the studies of the ganoderma spores has been undertaken. However, the improvement of the spore breaking techniques does not overcome the shortcoming of the low germination rate of the spores. In fact, due to the low germination rate, most of the studies on ganoderma spores are conducted using the extraction of bioactive substances from spores representing an array of dormant to various germination stages. Because the spores at different stages of the lifecycle produce different kinds and/or proportions of bioactive substances, each batch of the mixture of the spores thus contains different active ingredients. The results from such studies are apparently meaningless since no proper controls can be provided.
A germination activation method is disclosed in the parent application of the present application, which was issued as U.S. Pat. No. 6,316,002 B1, which is herein incorporated by reference. The method provides successfully activation of the dormant ganoderma spores and increase the germination rate of the ganoderma spores to more than 95%.
In the invention to be presented below, a method for using the germination activated Ganoderma lucidum spores (“GLSs”) as free radical scavenger (i.e., antioxidant) and anti-aging agent, particularly for reducing/relieving symptoms associated with male menopause, will be introduced. GLSs possess multiple biological activities and promotes general health. Particularly, its activities in removal of free radicals, promotion of hormonal production and antidepression render GLSs effective for treating conditions associated with old ages (i.e., anti-aging) and male menopause.